Lilies from our lobby…
They remind me of the daylilies that will be popping up soon at our house.
Speaking of our house- you should totally buy it. Really.
Okay, if you don’t want to buy it you should, at the very least, pass along this link to every single person you know.
The house is all dressed up and ready to be sold!!
We’re saying goodbye to yet another dear friend this week. Not really “goodbye” as much as “see you later” because thankfully this friend was kind enough to get a job back home.
Too many memories made and far too many laughs to recall…just know that you’ll be sorely missed!*
*But not for long because you’re on a direct path to us walking our kids to school together! Muuuuuahahahahah!
Thanks to some work needing to be done there, we’re off to New Zealand for a week!
For our JR Tolkien loving friends …
- No, we won’t be going to the south of NZ, so we won’t be perusing any Lord of the Rings sets. Sorry.
For our worrying family members…
- No, we won’t be going to the south of NZ, so we won’t be anywhere near where the earthquake hit a couple of months ago.
We’re looking forward to some gorgeous scenery, some divine New Zealand wines and some quality time with just each other. Cannot wait!
I am totally and utterly addicted to these shoes…
Not only are they the most comfortable shoes I own, but whenever you buy a pair Toms provides a pair for a child in need. (Read: win-win)
You should totally get a pair.*
*Or you could buy me another pair (size 6, red) because I’m dying to get more, but they’re like triple the price in Australia and I’ve failed to order them in time to reach the BFF’s house in time for him to bring them. Boo.
Not only a baby on board, but also a bitch…
I suppose you need to be eeeextra careful driving around this car.
We recently were invited to dinner by one of the higher-ups here in the Sydney office. He used to do this same job in the 80’s and has since had a career that has had him living all over the world.
A snippet from our night…
Him: “This life will change you. You’re still the person you were before and you hope people back home realize that, but you can’t help but change.”
Me: “I just feel like I always sound like an asshole to everyone back home. You want to share your life with the people you love, but how do you avoid sounding like an asshole?”
Him: “You can’t. No matter what, you’re always going to sound like an asshole.”
Ouch.
As much as I want to convey how incredibly blessed I feel every single day for this opportunity, I’m sure I don’t do that great of a job. I’m sure I’ve made more eyes roll then I care to know about over the past couple of years.
I know we’ve asked so much of our friends and family and it’s really because of all you guys back home that have helped us so much that we’ve even been able to do this. We’re beyond grateful. Truly.
Even if I apparently can’t do anything to avoid sounding like an asshole, I hope you know how thankful we are to have you in our lives and everything you’ve done for us.
xoxo
Been wondering where to buy ginormous teddy bears?
Look no further than suburban Sydney.
Going into the Australian outback was pretty high on our priority weekend list here. We had no idea where to go or what there was to do, but when you think of Australia, or at least when I do, I think “OUTBACK”. I also think “Crocodile Dundee”, ‘kangaroos”, “Olivia Newton John”, “Nicole Kidman” “koalas” and either start singing that Men at Work song (always the part about the Vegemite sandwich) or the old commercial jingle for Outback Steakhouse (let’s go Outback toniiiight…).
I digress.
So, after some research we discovered that THE thing to see in the outback or ‘bush” as anything outside of the cities are referred to, is Ayers Rock, also known by it’s Aboriginal name Urulu.
It was going to require another day of vacay to make it happen and in all honesty, I was a bit worried about what we were going to do all weekend. I mean, we were going to see a giant rock in the middle of nowhere Australia with literally nothing else around for hundreds and hundreds of miles.
Fortunately, this giant rock was unbelievably breathtaking…
Glowing orange during sunrises and sunsets, this sacred Aboriginal monolith was just incredible. It seemed to somehow get better every single time you looked at it from a different angle or in a different light. I can’t explain it, but **hello**, look at this thing…
Just surreal.
It wasn’t exactly by itself out there in the desert, as Kata Tjuta (the Olgas) were just 20 or so miles away and equally impressive in their own right…
Our only complaint the entire weekend was the insane amount of flies that plagued us relentlessly. I’ve never experienced anything like it and I pray we never do again. We literally had to constantly wave in front of our face and then countdown to be ready for a photo…
0ne, two…
three…
Let’s just say when a fly actually landed on my face in the plane as we were about to touch down in Sydney I was on the brink of a nervous breakdown. Not cool, flies. Not cool at all.
We got to learn a little about the Aboriginals from the area, not too much though, because it seems everything about their culture is a secret. I appreciated the fact that they draw a distinct line at how far they will commercialize their culture, but I couldn’t help wanting more.
Drawings from a cave where young Aboriginal males are taught “tjurkurrpa”, the stories of their ancestors that make up their laws of living…
Although they have all been so different from the next, I am always enamored with deserts and this one was no exception. They had an unusually heavy rainy season and the lush greens were such an incredible contrast to the surroundings.
I took about a billion photos so be sure to check out the album from this weekend…
I’ve only recently started observing Lent, as in actually giving something up for it. Recently, as in this is my second year. Last year I gave up fried foods. It was tough and that was exactly what I had intended it to be.
This year I gave up desserts or I guess sweets in general. No candy, no ice cream (ugh!), no chocolate (double ugh!), no cakes, no pies, no puddings, no crepes, no cookies, no gum, so cinnamon rolls, no donuts, no muffins, no toffee, no caramel, no…okay, you get the point and I’m only torturing myself further.
I’ve developed a real sweet tooth on the road with all the different desserts and flavors available, but aside from ice cream, chocolate is still my biggest temptation.
This is our hotel’s welcome gift each time we check in…
I didn’t eat any, but I did make the Wife take it to work with her the next day. This year has been even more challenging than last.
Thanks be to God.
